1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dropper bottle for dispensing doses of liquid medicine.
2. Related Art
Dropper bottles are known in the art for dispensing medicine. Dropper bottles generally include a bottle for holding a substance such as a liquid medicine, and a dropper apparatus that is used in connection with the bottle. The dropper apparatus typically includes a squeezable bulb attached to a cap that threadably engages with the bottle, and a tapered cylinder that extends into the bottle. In operation, the squeezable bulb is squeezed to force air out of the tapered cylinder. The squeezable bulb is then released, sucking liquid medicine into the tapered cylinder. The dropper apparatus is then withdrawn from the bottle, placed at a location where liquid medicine is to be discharged, and the squeezable bulb is again squeezed, this time forcing the liquid medicine from the tapered cylinder.
The tapered cylinder has an aperture at the distal end, which is placed proximate to the bottom of the dropper bottle when the cap is fully engaged with the bottle. However, there is typically a gap between the distal end of the tapered cylinder and the bottom of the dropper bottle. This results in the inability to withdraw the last amount of medicine from the dropper bottle, i.e., the medicine remaining in the bottle but below the distal end of the dropper apparatus. This leads to the waste of the last dosage or dosages of medicine. Another problem associated with dropper bottles of the prior art is the inability to effectively judge whether a full dose, or a portion of a dose remains in the bottle.